The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition late Wednesday, Shredit blindsided investors by saying it was not proceeding with its planned public offering and was instead accepting a $2.3-billion (U.S.) buyout from American medical waste disposal firm Stericycle Inc. The Globe's Niall McGee writes calling off an IPO this close to its stock market debut is practically unheard of. However, preparing for an IPO while secretly negotiating a sale to a third party is called conducting a "dual-track process" and it is fairly common in the capital markets. Whichever track yields the best return on investment for the original shareholders wins. The advantage to the dual-track route is gaining leverage with any potential buyer if an IPO process is under way -- and the nearer a company gets to an IPO date, the more leverage it gains. Most likely, the underwriters would have protected themselves via an "alternative transaction clause" in the "IPO engagement letter," which will see them get paid a portion of their fee for hitting certain "milestone" events, such as filing the preliminary prospectus. TD, BMO, CIBC and Scotia Capital were the joint book runners, but there were seven other banks on the syndicate.